Oxford Essential Dictionary
customer
noun
a person who buys things from a shop
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
customer
cus‧tom‧er S1 W1 /ˈkʌstəmə $ -ər/ BrE AmE noun [countable]
[Word Family: adjective: ↑customary, ↑custom, ↑customizable, ↑accustomed; noun: ↑custom, ↑customer, customs; verb: ↑accustom, ↑customize; adverb: ↑customarily]
[Date: 1400-1500; Origin: custom; from the custom of doing business in a particular place]
1. someone who buys goods or services from a shop, company etc:
We aim to offer good value and service to all our customers.
We’ve had several letters from satisfied customers.
customer service/care
Many of the banks offer a poor level of customer service.
He’s one of our regular customers.
best/biggest/largest customer (=the person or company who uses a shop or company the most)
2. awkward/tricky/tough etc customer someone who is difficult to deal with because they behave in a deliberately unhelpful way ⇨ cool customer at ↑cool1(3)
• • •
COLLOCATIONS
■ ADJECTIVES/NOUN + customer
▪ a regular customer My business quickly built up a base of regular customers.
▪ a good customer (=who buys a lot from you, or uses your service a lot) Good products attract good customers.
▪ a major/big/large customer (=who is important and buys a lot) America is a big customer for Japanese goods.
▪ a loyal customer (=who has been a customer for a long time) Some of our loyal customers have been coming here since the store opened.
▪ a satisfied customer (=who is pleased with your goods or service) Satisfied customers will retun again and again.
▪ a potential/prospective customer (=who might become a customer in the future) It’s very important to establish contact with potential customers.
▪ a business customer (=customers that are businesses) the bank’s major business customers
▪ existing customers (=that you already have) We want to improve our service for both new and existing customers.
■ verbs
▪ deal with a customer (=do business with or talk to a customer) He has a lot of experience in dealing with customers.
▪ serve a customer Every day the shop serves around 800 customers.
▪ attract customers (=get more customers) The Internet is a great way to attract new customers.
▪ keep/retain customers Keeping prices low helps to retain customers.
▪ lose a customer The company has lost some big customers in the last two years.
■ customer + NOUN
▪ customer service/care (=serving and looking after customers) Our aim is always to raise the level of customer service.
▪ customer relations Staff are given training in customer relations.
▪ customer satisfaction (=how pleased customers are) The firm carried out a survey of customer satisfaction.
▪ customer demand (=the amount of something customers want to buy or use) It’s important to respond quickly to changing customer demand.
▪ customer complaints My job is to handle customer complaints and enquiries.
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ customer someone who buys goods or services from a shop or company: Customers were waiting for the shop to open. | The bank is one of our biggest customers.
▪ client someone who pays for a service from a professional person or company: He has a meeting with one of his clients. | The company buys and sells shares on behalf of their clients
▪ shopper someone who goes to the shops looking for things to buy: The streets were full of Christmas shoppers.
▪ guest someone who pays to stay in a hotel: Guests must leave their rooms by 10 am.
▪ patron /ˈpeɪtrən/ formal a customer of a particular shop, restaurant or hotel – usually written on signs: The notice said ‘Parking for Patrons Only’.
▪ patient someone who is getting medical treatment from a doctor, or in a hospital: He is a patient of Dr Williams.
▪ consumer anyone who buys goods or uses services – used when considering these people as a group who have particular rights, needs, or behaviour: Consumers are demanding more environmentally-friendly products. | the rights of the consumer | The law is designed to protect consumers who buy goods on the Internet.
▪ market the number of people who want to buy a product, or the type of people who want to buy it: The market for organic food is growing all the time. | a magazine aimed at the youth market
▪ clientele /ˌkliːənˈtel $ ˌklaɪənˈtel, ˌkliː-/ formal the type of customers that a particular shop, restaurant etc gets: The hotel has a very upmarket clientele. | They have a wealthy international clientele.
Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary
customer
cus·tom·er [customer customers] [ˈkʌstəmə(r)] [ˈkʌstəmər] noun
1. a person or an organization that buys sth from a shop/store or business
• one of the shop's best/biggest customers
• They know me— I'm a regular customer.
• the customer service department
• The firm has excellent customer relations.
2. (old-fashioned, informal) used after an adjective to describe a particular type of person
• an awkward customer
• a cool customer (= sb who is always calm, even when in trouble)
• an ugly customer (= sb who may become violent)
Thesaurus:
customer noun C
• He's one of our best customers.
client • • shopper • • consumer • • buyer • • end-user • • regular • |formal patron • • purchaser • |BrE, informal punter • • •
have/deal with/get/lose a customer/client/buyer
attract customers/clients/shoppers/consumers/buyers/punters
customers/clients/shoppers/consumers/buyers/purchasers buy/spend sth
Collocations:
Shopping
Shopping
go/go out/be out shopping
go to (especially BrE) the shops/(especially NAmE) a store/(especially NAmE) the mall
do (BrE) the shopping/(especially NAmE) the grocery shopping/a bit of window-shopping
(NAmE, informal) hit/hang out at the mall
try on clothes/shoes
indulge in some retail therapy
go on a spending spree
cut/cut back on/reduce your spending
be/get caught shoplifting
donate sth to/take sth to/find sth in (BrE) a charity shop/(NAmE) a thrift store
buy/sell/find sth at (BrE) a car boot sale/(BrE) a jumble sale/a garage sale/(NAmE) a yard sale
find/get/pick up a bargain
At the shop/store
load/push/wheel (BrE) a trolley/(NAmE) a cart
stand in/wait in (BrE) the checkout queue/(NAmE) the checkout line
(NAmE) stand in line/ (BrE) queue at the checkout
bag (especially NAmE) (your) groceries
pack (away) (especially BrE) your shopping
stack/stock/restock the shelves at a store (with sth)
be (found) on/appear on supermarket/shop/store shelves
be in/have in/be out of/run out of stock
deal with/help/serve customers
run a special promotion
be on special offer
Buying goods
make/complete a purchase
buy/purchase sth online/by mail order
make/place/take an order for sth
buy/order sth in bulk/in advance
accept/take credit cards
pay (in) cash/by (credit/debit) card/(BrE) with a gift voucher/(NAmE) with a gift certificate
enter your PIN number
ask for/get/obtain a receipt
return/exchange an item/a product
be entitled to/ask for/demand a refund
compare prices
offer (sb)/give (sb)/get/receive a 30% discount
Example Bank:
• If you have a complaint, contact the customer care unit.
• It's a special offer to attract new customers.
• Part of good customer relations is knowing how to deal with complaints.
• The questionnaire is to test customer reaction to the new store design.
• The terms of the guarantee will be set out in the customer agreement.
• There are a large number of potential customers for the new product.
• They are hoping that TV advertising will increase their customer base.
• They are one of our biggest customers.
• They carried out a customer satisfaction survey.
• They organized an evening's entertainment for favoured customers.
• This cheaper model was produced in response to customer demand.
• We can't afford to lose any more customers.
• We like to think that we have satisfied customers.
• Draw up a customer profile and write a description of your typical customer.
• He comes in twice a week and is one of our best customers.
• I'd like to speak to someone in the customer service department, please.
• Is there a set procedure for dealing with customer complaints?
• Schools are among the biggest customers for this service.
• They know me— I'm a regular customer.
Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary
Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary - 4th Edition
customer / kʌs.tə.mə r / / -mɚ / noun [ C ]
A2 a person who buys goods or a service:
a satisfied customer
Mrs Wilson is one of our regular customers.
© Cambridge University Press 2013
Collins Advanced Learner’s English Dictionary
customer
/kʌstəmə(r)/
(customers)
Frequency: The word is one of the 1500 most common words in English.
1.
A customer is someone who buys goods or services, especially from a shop.
Our customers have very tight budgets.
...the quality of customer service...
N-COUNT
2.
You can use customer in expressions such as a cool customer or a tough customer to indicate what someone’s behaviour or character is like. (INFORMAL)
...two pretty awkward customers.
N-COUNT: adj N
Merriam-Webster's Advanced Learner's Dictionary
customer
cus·tom·er /ˈkʌstəmɚ/ noun, pl -ers [count]
1 : someone who buys goods or services from a business
• She is one of our best/regular customers.
• Remember, the customer is always right. [=never argue with a customer]
- often used before another noun
• The company has good/poor customer service.
• customer satisfaction
2 informal : a person who has a particular quality
• He is one tough/tricky customer. [=he is a tough/tricky person]
• She's a pretty cool customer.